Dwelling Place

The statement is sometimes made that we are a temple of Jesus. Perhaps more understandable is that many Christians who are indwelled by the Holy Spirit live their lives following guidance by that powerful force become a dwelling place from which the Holy Spirit can radiate to others. Whether Christians are close or at a distance, their influence permeates societies.  "And in [Jesus] you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." - Eph. 2:22 (NIV)

Frustration

I once saw a poster that read, “You don’t really know someone until you tell them "no" about something.” In the secular part of the world, this indicates some form of disagreement for any number of reasons. Based on our desires, and self authority, we react - badly sometimes. When God says "no", it is based on His knowledge and the result is always best for us; we need to seek better desires. - "Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you." Deut. 31:6 (ESV)

Blessings

Have you gotten an email or a note when the ‘closing’ was “Blessings”? Did you consider this a positive statement, or are “blessings” sometimes other than what we might desire? My point is the “blessings” we receive might not seem like good things at first, but believing that God never gives anything to His children that is not good must be retained. A blessing from God may appear like a curse at first, but later the faithful person realizes what they received was a better gift than they first imagined. "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." Jas. 1:17 (NIV) Let's have this attitude as we walk our unique individual spiritual journey in life led by the Holy Spirit.

Danger

People tend to exercise caution around those things that are regarded as extremely dangerous. Many times this occurs without really understanding the thing of which they are afraid; for some people that thing is forgiveness. We should examine very closely the one thing Jesus described as unforgivable. This is not to decide how closely one might try to get before crossing some threshold, but how to avoid this threshold completely. The scripture in focus is Mk. 3:29 "but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin.” If we accept that the Holy Spirit is one with Jesus and the Father, we can grasp the magnitude of such an action. If one blasphemes the one who can forgive; they are rejecting Him and His sovereignty. This is essentially stating a denial of God's existence, and therefore His importance. If we accept God, Jesus, and the work of the Holy Spirit, we have moved past fear of this action.

Never

When God says "never," that has a different meaning than when a human says a similar thing. Mankind speaks of intentions, God speaks of certainty, only He can guarantee the results. Ezekiel was led by the Holy Spirit to speak of a future time when He would indwell God's people and never leave them, yes, never! When a person becomes joined to God because of Jesus, no external force can remove them from this promise. "And I will never again turn my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit upon the people of Israel. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!" — Ezek. 39:29 NLT. Assurance from God is true certainty, never to be changed.

Doing Good

In the days Jesus lived on the earth, many things were shared about His activities. His activities were sorely needed and became a message of hope to a downtrodden world. Whereever the influence of God is welcomed, His present emissary, the Holy Spirit works as He desires. His actions may not satisfy many people's desires, but those actions are ways to glorify God. Jesus' work continues today, though perhaps not the the same ways as when He lived on earth. When believers do things considered "good" by God, He is glorified. This describes the actions of Jesus and if allowed describes the actions of those led by the Holy Spirit. "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and because God was with him, he went around doing good and healing everyone who was oppressed by the devil." - Acts 10:38 (ISV)

Available

While limited to specific individuals in the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit has always been available to those who needed His help. This is evident in the case of Job's activities. "The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life." - Job 33:4 (NIV)

Pour Out

When we think of something being poured out, we usually think of a substance which flows out of some container with little control. Sometimes we might use the word, "gushing" to describe this observation. The first century believers in Jesus experienced just this. The Holy Spirit gushed out to creation to provide praise and honor to God the Father and welcome His children into a close relationship with Him. Isaiah predicted this action, "The LORD said, For I will pour out water to quench your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children." - Isaiah 44:3 Today, the Holy Spirit will guide us with fervor, if we will but allow Him to do so.

Thirst

Have you ever though of the Holy Spirit as bubbling up inside you? He will if we allow Him to do so. Jesus replied, "Anyone who drinks this water [from Jacob's well] will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life." - Jn. 4:13-14

Change

Do people ever change? This depends upon what type of change is being targeted. A person’s actions and habits can undergo training, but their heart is another matter. Researchers have learned over years of observation that one person cannot really change another person’s heart. The other person may comply with requests and change for a time, but effective personal change comes from within the individual and is built on internal desire for a particular result. Without an immense catalyst, personal change usually requires focused efforts over an extended period of time to change one’s heart. Without personal desire, efforts toward permanent change are likely futile. The heart is the source of what makes up a person; it includes their goals, motives, and vigor. Regarding spiritual change, Jesus said, “But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.” - Matt. 15:18-20 (ESV). When considering the pathway to spiritual wholeness, what a person consumes does not separate a person from God, but their attitude toward Him. For many people, change can be extremely difficult. As we walk our daily steps, we generally seek pathways which aren’t littered with options for possible or certain disappointment. As we mature, we gather experiences about completing tasks efficiently and that end well or according to our expectations; these roll over into practiced habits. With practice, we can develop muscle memory (actions become automatic, without thought). When we have a comfortable pathway with few obstacles, we sometime think we are in a “groove.” Many years ago, employers recognized this quality within people and subsequently developed an interview technique called “Behavioral Interviewing.” The thesis of this technique basically states that a person will generally repeat their actions from past experiences: “if a practice has worked before, it will likely work again. There is no need to reinvent a new practice without perceived need.” Given that physical circumstances are similar, there is significant truth in this. If an employer can find a person who is knowledgeable and experienced about a particular job, chances are they will be able to perform the needed tasks well and will not change without some catastrophic event. Also, they will likely easily adjust for minor differences. However, another view of this is that the “groove” can become a “rut,” a situation wherein there are few opportunities for personal challenges; they may become bored. People are unique, so this “rut” can have radically different presentations. Some have described such a lifestyle as a habit, or even an addiction. Prime examples of this involve tobacco, alcohol, or pain medicine. Many people want to get out of their “rut,” and try something different, or new. However, change requires desire, motivation, and courage. A similar description can be made concerning those who want to follow God. Usually, people will identify a person or group of people who seem to be acting in a way that they understand their concept of God approves. Within those who follow Christianity, this “rut” may be some group who hold various understandings of religious practice; these are usually labeled denominations.
The pathway out of a “rut” is some sort of change. For those in a religious group, the proper pathway should be Bible study and prayer. For those who find themselves properly aligned with biblical teaching, the pathway is perhaps choosing a different way to help others. God desires Christians to imitate Jesus and help others, these are good efforts/works God’s people are encouraged to practice. Paul directly encouraged the Ephesian Christians about this, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Eph. 2:10 (ESV).
When we follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit along our unique individual spiritual journey, there are many good works created for us to serve God. We each should attempt to walk in them.

Conversation

What we call prayer should really be understood as a conversation with God. He has given us so many things as information from Him in the Bible, available constantly. Prayer is our opportunity to discuss our understanding of what He has said. When we feel the need to reach out, the indwelling Holy Spirit is always there. As we ponder scripture, we may become aware of things we had not realized before. Sometimes new experiences and struggles in life lead us to consider our surroundings in ways we have not before. When we experience different situations and make new conclusions according to His Word, then, God has spoken to us. We should treasure this guidance, always. "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans." Rom. 8:26 (NIV)

One Spirit

Paul preached about a relationship that set aside cultural and individual preferences. Because God placed His Spirit in anyone who would obey Jesus, it was a great humanity leveling statement, We need to adopt his teaching, "For we were all baptized with one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free-- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." 1 Cor. 12:13 (NIV)

Ever present

Many times we encounter situations in which we feel alone, no friends, no support. In these times we need to remember the Holy Spirit is always with the Christian, no matter what the circumstances. "Wherever the Spirit would go, they would go, and the wheels would rise along with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels." Ezek. 1:20 (NIV)

Never Alone

Our physical existence may involve times when we feel alone, by ourselves, lacking personal confidence. This is a feeling the Christian never needs to experience because the Holy Spirit lives within us; we only need to allow Him to help guide us toward godly objectives. When we are distressed and reach out to God, we always have someone to go with us and help us. “And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will.” - Rom. 8:27 (NLT)

Decisions

Each of us constantly evaluates what we see and hear to make subsequent decisions. How then to we decide which next decision is best? By comparing our options to the whole word of God for consistency. "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world." - 1 Jn. 4:1 (NASV)